Anniversary of Fire Off-Broadway

At our Easter dinner tonight one of our pastors made mention that last year John Wesley was with us. It was the eve of opening Fire Off-Broadway in which Roger Nelson (who portrays John Wesley) and I alternated performances at Theatre 315 in NYC. For some snapshots from that remarkable adventure click on April '06 in Archives.

Front Page news

Phil Snyder, who did the horse whinny (on MP3) for Roger's play during our Off-Broadway run, just made the front page of the Los Angeles Daily News: "The Man of a Million Voices."  It was his wife, Karen, that developed the artwork for our run, and she's also mentioned in the article.  It's great to see believing artists featured this way!

Go!

Only four shows left in our Off-Broadway run, Fire Off-Broadway.

On Saturday Mary Previte will be speaking after Beyond the Chariots. A former assembly woman for the State of New Jersey, she's the great-granddaughter of Hudson Taylor, and she was with Eric Liddell in the concentration camp featured in the play.

Be sure to tell people in your church this Sunday that Eric Liddell's middle daughter Heather will be speaking after the performance that evening. If you get seven people to come with you your ticket is free: FireOffBroadway.com/Group

Thanks for all your prayers. The run is going very well.

In Christ alone,
Rich

Announcement

There are two one-man plays about Church heroes playing Off-Broadway from April 17-23. Relive the incredible adventures of 1924 Olympic Gold medal winner Eric Liddell in war-torn China. Rich Swingle's new one-man play Beyond the Chariots picks up where Chariots of Fire left off. Behold Liddell's greatest race: as a missionary who conquers persecution and succeeds by turning his greatest enemy into a "Powerful Runner Who Overcomes Great Obstacles." At different times, experience the widely acclaimed performance of the life and times of John Wesley, the man who rode more than 250,000 miles to bring spiritual renewal to England and America! The Man from Aldersgate brings to life John Wesley and his dynamic ministry. In John Wesley's own words you will gain new insights into the importance of prayer, and how personal failure can teach us to trust Christ. The play has been performed over 1,300 times in 32 countries and all 50 states! 

Well lit

David Lander, our award-winning Broadway lighting designer, went through Beyond the Chariots scene by scene today. His ideas are incredible! If you've already seen the play it will be worth the price of admission just to see how David's lighting it!

Max McLean Fire

Max McLean is performing his one-man play, The Screwtape Letters in the Salvation Army's Theatre 315, where we'll be doing our run. He graciously recorded a radio spot, which is now playing on WAWZ. Listen for it!

Do you have some marijuana?

Roger Nelson, who's performing in our Off-Broadway run in a couple of weeks, walked into a drug store the other night to pick up some milk. A young man approached him and asked, "Do you have some marijuana?" Roger said, "No, but I have something better." Within a half an hour Roger led this young man in a prayer to receive the Lord as his personal Savior! He told Roger that he was on his way into the drug store to get enough medication to overdose. Pray that he calls Roger back after he returns from NYC.

Weeping inconsolably

In Beyond the Chariots Eric Liddell's life-long friend, AP Cullen (Uncle Rooper), mentions a "seven-year old chap who was weeping inconsolably." The boy was crying as eight-year old Eric protected him from a hazing by some teens. Today I'm weeping inconsolably because the Lord stood up for me just now.

I've had bronchitis for a dozen days, and this morning I woke up without much of a voice. The plan was to perform an excerpt from Beyond the Chariots today for about 250 pastors and church leaders here in Denville, NJ. I decided to show an interview with Liddell's former student, HK Cheng, but I got several people praying for me, and my voice was miraculously restored! Keep praying, I'm not out of the woods, but in that moment I really felt the Holy Spirit carrying me. I'm still inconsolable thinking about it.

Then, the Lord gave us another miracle! After my performance the speaker, Dr. Larry McKain of New Church Specialties, leapt to his feet and said, "I've seen Roger Nelson's play about John Wesley, and I think everyone should attend!" The Nazarene leaders (Nazarenes came from Methodists who came from Wesley) have grown to love Larry all through the day. I know his words carried great weight.

If you're online now pray that many will grab our postcards and posters when it lets out at 3pm EST. Pray they bring large groups to Fire Off-Broadway!

The Ignition of FireOffBroadway

Brad L. Smith, the playwright of The Man from Aldersgate, has agreed to write a press release for our Off-Broadway run.

To give him some background I've written up the story of how this all got started, and I'll post it under comments below in case you're interested.

I'm also going to post quotes about Beyond the Chariots. Since the play has only been seen by eight audiences to date I would love to gather a few more comments. If you've seen Beyond the Chariots and would like a chance to be quoted (hopefully in some major periodicals) feel free to leave a quote by clicking on "comment" below.

Thanks so much!

Embarking on a Great Adventure

I met with Roger Nelson while I was in Long Beach, CA, to firm up plans for our Off-Broadway run at Theatre 315 in April. We now have a rough draft of our website up and running: RichDrama.com/OffBroadway. It now shows which play will be performed on which days. Watch this blog to find out when tickets are available.

We're figuring that our budget will be about $10,000, and we'd love to have you partner with us in this endeavor by making a tax-deductible contribution:

Go to A1ManPlay.com and click on Donations in the left column.

Follow the instructions, to donate either by PayPal or with a credit card.

On the final screen there will be a window that says, "Message to Seller." Please put the code "BTC NYC" in that window.

If you prefer to donate with a check, make it out to "The Friends of John Wesley" and send it to:

The Friends of John Wesley
Attn: BTC NYC
1716 1/4 Sierra Bonita
Pasadena, California 91104

Please put "BTC NYC" in the memo.

Either way you contribute, in January you'll receive a letter thanking you for your tax-deductible contribution.

Thanks so much for helping us bring these plays to the Broadway community.

You can also contribute by making purchases through my online Book Store.